Matsya (tribe)

Ancient Hindu kingdom of India

This article is about historical Iron Age kingdom. For the mythological kingdom, see Matsya Kingdom. For the avatar of the Hindu god Viṣṇu, see Matsya. For other uses, see Matsya (disambiguation).

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
Find sources: "Matsya" tribe – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (February 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

Kingdom of Matsya

Macchā

c. 1400 BCE–c. 350 BCE

Matsya Kingdom and other Mahajanapadas in the Post Vedic period.

Capital| Virāṭanagara
Common languages| Prakrits
Religion

| Historical Vedic religion[1]
Demonym(s)| Mātsyeya
Government| Monarchy
Raja|
Historical era| Iron Age

• Established

| c. 1400 BCE

• Disestablished

| c. 350 BCE

Preceded by | Succeeded by

|

|  | Indus Valley civilisation

|

| Magadha |

|

Today part of| India

Matsya (Pali: Macchā) was an ancient Indo-Aryan tribe of central South Asia whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The members of the Matsya tribe were called the Mātsyeyas and were organised into a kingdom called the Matsya kingdom.[1]

## Etymology

[edit]

Macchā in Pāli and Matsya in Sanskrit mean "fish".[2][3][4]

## Location

[edit]

Location of the Matsyas among the Vedic tribes

Location of Matsya during the late Vedic period

Location of Matsya during the post-Vedic period

History of South Asia

Outline

Palaeolithic (2,500,000–250,000 BC)

|  Madrasian culture|

|

Soanian culture|

Neolithic (10,800–3300 BC)

|  Bhirrana culture|  (7570–6200 BC)

|

Mehrgarh culture|  (7000–3300 BC)
Edakkal culture|  (5000–3000 BC)

Chalcolithic (3500–1500 BC)

|  Anarta tradition|  (c. 3950–1900 BC)

|

Ahar-Banas culture|  (3000–1500 BC)
Pandu culture|  (1600–750 BC)
Malwa culture|  (1600–1300 BC)
Jorwe culture|  (1400–700 BC)

Bronze Age (3300–1300 BC)

|  Indus Valley Civilisation| (3300–1300 BC)

|

– Early Harappan culture| (3300–2600 BC)
– Mature Harappan culture| (2600–1900 BC)
– Late Harappan culture| (1900–1300 BC)
Vedic Civilisation| (2000–500 BC)
– Ochre Coloured Pottery culture| (2000–1600 BC)
– Swat culture| (1600–500 BC)

Iron Age (1500–200 BC)

|  Vedic Civilisation| (1500–500 BC)

|

– Janapadas|  (1500–600 BC)
– Black and Red ware culture| (1300–1000 BC)
– Painted Grey Ware culture|  (1200–600 BC)
– Northern Black Polished Ware|  (700–200 BC)
Pradyota dynasty|  (799–684 BC)
Haryanka dynasty|  (684–424 BC)
Three Crowned Kingdoms|  (c. 600 BC – AD 1600)
Maha Janapadas|  (c. 600–300 BC)
Achaemenid Empire|  (550–330 BC)
Ror Dynasty|  (450 BC – AD 489)
Shaishunaga dynasty|  (424–345 BC)
Nanda Empire|  (380–321 BC)
Macedonian Empire|  (330–323 BC)
Maurya Empire|  (321–184 BC)
Seleucid India|  (312–303 BC)
Sangam period|  (c. 300 BC – c. 300 AD)
Pandya Empire|  (c. 300 BC – AD 1345)
Chera Kingdom|  (c. 300 BC – AD 1102)
Chola Empire|  (c. 300 BC – AD 1279)
Pallava Empire|  (c. 250 AD – AD 800)
Maha-Megha-Vahana Empire|  (c. 250 BC – c. AD 500)
Parthian Empire|  (247 BC – AD 224)

Middle Kingdoms (230 BC – AD 1206)

|  Satavahana Empire|  (230 BC – AD 220)

|

Kuninda Kingdom|  (200 BC – AD 300)
Mitra Dynasty|  (c. 150 – c. 50 BC)
Shunga Empire|  (185–73 BC)
Indo-Greek Kingdom|  (180 BC – AD 10)
Kanva Empire|  (75–26 BC)
Indo-Scythian Kingdom|  (50 BC – AD 400)
Indo-Parthian Kingdom|  (AD 21 – c. 130)
Western Satrap Empire|  (AD 35–405 )
Kushan Empire|  (AD 60–240)
Bharshiva Dynasty|  (170–350)
Nagas of Padmavati|  (210–340)
Sasanian Empire|  (224–651)
Indo-Sassanid Kingdom|  (230–360)
Vakataka Empire|  (c. 250 – c. 500)
Kalabhras Empire|  (c. 250 – c. 600)
Gupta Empire|  (280–550)
Kadamba Empire|  (345–525)
Western Ganga Kingdom|  (350–1000)
Kamarupa Kingdom|  (350–1100)
Vishnukundina Empire|  (420–624)
Maitraka Empire|  (475–767)
Huna Kingdom|  (475–576)
Rai Kingdom|  (489–632)
Kabul Shahi Empire|  (c. 500 – 1026)
Chalukya Empire|  (543–753)
Maukhari Empire|  (c. 550 – c. 700)
Harsha Empire|  (606–647)
Tibetan Empire|  (618–841)
Eastern Chalukya Kingdom|  (624–1075)
Rashidun Caliphate|  (632–661)
Gurjara-Pratihara Empire|  (650–1036)
Umayyad Caliphate|  (661–750)
Mallabhum kingdom|  (694–1947)
Bhauma-Kara Kingdom|  (736–916)
Pala Empire|  (750–1174)
Rashtrakuta Empire|  (753–982)
Paramara Kingdom|  (800–1327)
Yadava Empire|  (850–1334)
Somavamshi Kingdom|  (882–1110)
Chaulukya Kingdom|  (942–1244)
Western Chalukya Empire|  (973–1189)
Lohara Kingdom|  (1003–1320)
Hoysala Empire|  (1040–1347)
Sena Empire|  (1070–1230)
Eastern Ganga Empire|  (1078–1434)
Kakatiya Kingdom|  (1083–1323)
Zamorin Kingdom|  (1102–1766)
Kalachuris of Tripuri|  (675–1210)
Kalachuris of Kalyani|  (1156–1184)
Chutiya Kingdom|  (1187–1673)
Deva Kingdom|  (c. 1200 – c. 1300)

Late medieval period (1206–1526)

|  Ghaznavid Dynasty|  (977–1186)

|

Ghurid Dynasty|  (1170–1206)
Delhi Sultanate|  (1206–1526)
– Mamluk Sultanate|  (1206–1290)
– Khalji Sultanate|  (1290–1320)
– Tughlaq Sultanate|  (1320–1414)
– Sayyid Sultanate|  (1414–1451)
– Lodi Sultanate|  (1451–1526)
Ahom Kingdom|  (1228–1826)
Chitradurga Kingdom|  (1300–1779)
Reddy Kingdom|  (1325–1448)
Vijayanagara Empire|  (1336–1646)
Bengal Sultanate|  (1352–1576)
Garhwal Kingdom|  (1358–1803)
Mysore Kingdom|  (1399–1947)
Gajapati Empire|  (1434–1541)
Ladakh Kingdom |  (1470–1842)
Deccan sultanates|  (1490–1596)
– Ahmadnagar Sultanate|  (1490–1636)
– Berar sultanate|  (1490–1574)
– Bidar Sultanate|  (1492–1619)
– Bijapur Sultanate|  (1492–1686)
– Golkonda Sultanate|  (1518–1687)
Keladi Kingdom|  (1499–1763)
Koch Kingdom|  (1515–1947)

Early modern period (1526–1858)

|  Mughal Empire|  (1526–1858)

|

Sur Empire|  (1540–1556)
Madurai Kingdom|  (1529–1736)
Thanjavur Kingdom|  (1532–1673)
Bhoi dynasty|  (1541–1804)
Bengal Subah|  (1576–1757)
Marava Kingdom|  (1600–1750)
Sikkim Kingdom|  (1642–1975)
Thondaiman Kingdom|  (1650–1948)
Maratha Empire|  (1674–1818)
Sikh Confederacy|  (1707–1799)
Travancore Kingdom|  (1729–1947)
Sikh Empire|  (1799–1849)

Colonial states (1510–1961)

|  Portuguese India|  (1510–1961)

|

Dutch India|  (1605–1825)
Danish India|  (1620–1869)
French India|  (1759–1954)
Company Raj|  (1757–1858)
British Raj|  (1858–1947)

National histories

* Afghanistan
* Bangladesh
* Bhutan
* India
* Maldives
* Nepal
* Pakistan
* Sri Lanka

Regional histories

* Assam
* Balochistan
* Bengal
* Bihar
* Gujarat
* Himachal Pradesh
* Kabul
* Karnataka
* Kashmir
* Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
* Rajasthan
* Maharashtra
* Uttar Pradesh
* Punjab
* Odisha
* Sindh
* South India
* Tamil Nadu
* Tibet

Specialised histories

* Agriculture
* Architecture
* Coinage
* Demographics
* Dynasties
* Economy
* Education
* Indology
* Influence on Southeast Asia
* Language
* Literature
* Maritime
* Metallurgy
* Military
* Partition of India
* Pakistan studies
* Philosophy
* Religion
* Science and technology
* Timeline

* v
* t
* e

The kingdom of the Mātsyeyas covered an extensive territory, with the Sarasvatī river and the forests skirting it as its western border, and its southern boundaries being the hills near the Chambal River. Most of the kingdom comprised parts of present-day North-eastern Rajasthan. The neighbours of the Matsya state were Kuru in the north, and Sūrasena in the east.[1][5]

The capital of Matsya was Virāṭanagara and the people of virat nagar was called mine after many year mine's are called meena , which corresponds to the modern-day Bairāṭ in Jaipur district of Rajasthan.[1][5]

## History

[edit]

The Matsya tribe was first mentioned in the Ṛgveda, where they appear as one of the opponents of Sudās during the Battle of the Ten Kings.[1]

According to the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa, the Mātsyeya king Dhvasan Dvaitavana performed an aśvamedha sacrifice near the Sarasvatī river. A forest on the banks of the Sarasvatī and a lake were both named after the king Dvaitavana.[1]

Vedic texts such as the Gopatha Brāhmaṇa mention the Mātsyeyas along with the Śālva tribe, and the Kauśītaki Upaniṣad connects them with the Kuru-Pañcālas. Later Puranic texts such as the Mahābhārata connects them with the Trigartas and the Caidyas, and the Manu-Saṃhitā lists the countries of the Mātsyeyas, the Śūrasenakas, the Pañcālas, and of Kuru-kṣetra, as forming the Brahmarṣi-deśa (the holy enclave of the brāhmaṇa sages).[1]

The later history of Matsya is not known, although the Buddhist Aṅguttara Nikāya included it among the sixteen Mahājanapadas ("great realms"), which were the most powerful states of South Asia immediately before the birth of the Buddha.[5] The Matsya state in the Mahājanapada period archaeologically corresponds to the Northern Black Polished Ware archaeological culture which in the western part of the Gaṅgā-Yamunā Doab region succeeded the earlier Painted Grey Ware culture, and is associated with the Kuru, Pañcāla, Matsya, Surasena and Vatsa Mahājanapadas.[6]

Unlike other states of central South Asia who abandoned the kingdom form for a gaṇasaṅgha (aristocratic oligarchic republic) mode of government during the late Iron Age, Matsya maintained a monarchical system.[5]

Matsya was eventually conquered by the empire of Magadha. The region roughly corresponds to the Mewat region which was ruled by the Khanzada Rajputs. [5]

## Legacy

[edit]

After the Indian independence in 1947, the princely states of Bharatpur, Dholpur, Alwar and Karauli were temporarily put together from 1947 to 1949 as the ″United States of Matsya″, and later in March 1949 after these princely states signed the Instrument of Accession they were merged with the present state of Rajasthan.[7]

The Matsya Festival is held in Alwar every year in the last week of November to celebrate culture and adventure.[8]

## See also

[edit]

* Vedic period
* Janpadas
* Mahajanapadas
* Cemetery H culture
* Painted Grey Ware culture
* Northern Black Polished Ware
* Kingdoms of Ancient India

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f g Raychaudhuri 1953, p. 66-68.
2. ^ Monier-Williams, Monier (1899). A Sanskrit-English Dictionary: Etymologically and Philologically Arranged with Special Reference to Cognate Indo-European Languages. Oxford, England, United Kingdom: Clarendon Press. p. 776.
3. ^ Apte, Vaman Shivram (1890). The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. p. 735. ISBN 978-8-120-81568-1.
4. ^ Mayrhofer, Manfred (1996). Entry “mátsya-”. In: Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan] Volume II. Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, 1996. pp. 297-298. (In German)
5. ^ a b c d e Raychaudhuri 1953, p. 137-138.
6. ^ Bhan, Suraj (1 December 2006). "North Indian Protohistory and Vedic Aryans". Ancient Asia. 1: 173. doi:10.5334/aa.06115. ISSN 2042-5937.
7. ^ NWR tourist places
8. ^ Times Travel Editor (November 2018). "All about Alwar Matsya Festival". Times of India. Alwar, Rajasthan, India. `{{cite news}}`: `|author=` has generic name (help).

## Sources

[edit]

* Raychaudhuri, Hemchandra (1953). Political History of Ancient India: From the Accession of Parikshit to the Extinction of Gupta Dynasty. University of Calcutta.

* v
* t
* e

Mahajanapadas

Great Indian Kingdoms
(c. 600 BCE–c. 300 BCE)|

* Anga
* Asmaka (Assaka)
* Avanti
* Chedi
* Gandhara
* Kashi
* Kamboja
* Kosala
* Kuru
* Magadha
* Malla
* Maccha (Matsya)
* Panchala
* Surasena
* Vajji
* Vatsa (Vamsa)

* v
* t
* e

Historical regions of North India

* Ahirwal
* Awadh
* Bagelkhand
* Bagar
* Baltistan
* Bhojpur
* Braj
* Bundelkhand
* Dardistan
* Doaba
* Dhundhar
* Garhwal
* Gorwar
* Hadoti
* Jammu
* Kashmir
* Kumaon
* Ladakh
* Majha
* Marwar
* Mewar
* Mewat
* Punjab
* Malwa
* Purvanchal
* Rohilkhand
* Shekhawati
* Vagad

*[c.]: circa
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template